WE WOULD like to introduce you to some of the best contemporary fiction - completely free.

Sceptre are our partners in this exciting literary offer and have arranged for Independent readers to receive a free copy of one of their titles, which normally sell for £5.99.

Sceptre publishes many of the most imaginative, thought-provoking and entertaining authors who are writing today, including Emma Tennant, DM Thomas, Melvyn Bragg, Rose Tremain, Thomas Keneally, Ariel Dorfman and William Riviere.

To obtain your free novel, collect five differently numbered tokens that will be published this week in The Independent and exchange them at any branch of Dillons for one of ten titles in the Sceptre Independent selection.

To introduce new readers to some of its exciting new authors Sceptre has produced a free volume containing extracts from 12 of its titles. The anthology, which is available at Dillons and other good bookshops, also contains vouchers worth £12 redeemable against any Sceptre hardback or paperback title.

When you have collected your five tokens from The Independent the titles they can be exchanged for are:

The Life Game by Nigel Watts

A Time To Dance by Melvyn Bragg

Pemberley by Emma Tennant

Pictures At An Exhibition by DM Thomas

Sacred Country by Rose Tremain

The Big Man by William McIlvanney

Before And After by Rosellen Brown

The Men Who Loved Evelyn Cotton by Frank Ronan

Caesar by Allan Massie

The Blindfold by Siri Hustvedt

The first token towards your free Sceptre novel was published yesterday on a special coupon that you should have cut out and kept. Tokens 1 and 2 are published today and you need a total of 5 tokens to qualify for the Sceptre offer. Another coupon will be published later this week in case you missed the one in yesterday's paper.

Please read the full terms and conditions on the coupon. The offer is subject to availability. For queries, please call Dillons on 0121 626 7270. For previously published tokens send an SAE to The Independent/Sceptre Token Request, PO Box 250, Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire AL7 1TU. State the number(s) of the token(s) required.